VincentBerg.com

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Not-Quite Human 2

Lost With Nothing to Lose

Available at a discount ($5.99) on smashwords until May 12, 2018,
when the price returns to full retail of $7.99.
(The book is more expensive because it’s much longer, more detailed with much more character development than normal and took a long time to complete.)

Unable to find a home and acceptance on Earth, an intrepid band of misplaced youth seek their ancestral home among the stars. Unfortunately, their reception is not quite what they hoped for.

The home they discover is a hostile environment, involved in a huge interstellar war with a hostile alien species. Everyone is on guard, and the newcomers are viewed as untrusted interlopers. They search for a place in a world with no use for them, with no place to turn for assistance.

Faced with an unwinnable situation, they seek to change the rules, risking arrest, trial and even death in hopes of fixing a world they know little about.

Detective Emma Rules is plucked from obscurity by the New York City Police Commissioner to investigate the death of a prominent city councilman. She faces an impossible mission, quickly solve the crime with minimal staff, few resources and the Commissioner as the prime suspect. If she succeeds, she gains the support of the commissioner. If she fails, it’ll make the NYPD look corrupt and plunge the city into turmoil.

On top of that, her brother’s wife and daughter seek her assistance, creating family frictions and throwing her life into turmoil when she has little time to deal with it. And after years of protecting herself emotionally, she’s drawn into an unanticipated romance, which threatens to change her life as much as the case itself. Between these whirlwind events, she’s buffeted by social and professional events, as the biggest case of her career threatens to unravel it.

Leza’s an unusual young woman, living with, protecting and caring for Zombies. In an apocalyptic wasteland where the living are few, she represents a unique hybrid, a living zombie. She speaks with the undead and can teach the living how to survive. If the humans can only keep from killing her, that is.

Discovered during a final confrontation between a survivor refuge and an oncoming horde of the undead, Leza saves the day. She represents more than just another day of survival, but whether that spells humanity’s rescue or the future of the undead is anyone’s guess. She may be humanity’s redemption or their ultimate annihilation.

The Cuckoo’s Progeny

Not-Quite Human 1

Al and Betty aren’t like their classmates. They’ve developed particular skills which set them apart, and which sets them in a search for mysteries which eventually leads them in a search for their origins, and the long interstellar trip home.

Searching out others like them, they build a crew to search for a ship which will hopefully take them to a home they’ve never known, to a reception they aren’t sure will be welcoming.

An experimental interstellar space voyage goes horribly wrong and the unlucky test pilot ends up, unhurt, back home. He then struggles through internal, personal and Congressional investigations as he struggles to perceive exactly what he’s become.

“Never Leave Anyone Behind” is a familiar refrain for American Servicemen. A crew is incapacitated in a strange land and a hostile government tries to capture them and steal their resources. What if you’re not a member of the military? Do you put your and your family’s lives at risk to help those who can’t help themselves, especially for those who may never reward you or who may not even survive?

Josh Evens discovers an injured shipwrecked alien and undertakes to not only care for it, but to seek out, rescue and protect its companions from both his government and others.

Its one of those books you don’t want to put [down] and when you have finished you wished it would carry on

Review by: Michael Allstott on March 17, 2014 :
I’ve enjoyed all of Vincent’s books, and Stranded is no exception. His crash landing scenario focuses on the human element, but there is some alien uniqueness and some fancy technology. I’m not sure if our government is quite as bad as the book makes it out to be, but it wouldn’t surprise me. A very enjoyable read.

“Never Leave Anyone Behind” is a familiar refrain for American Servicemen. A crew is incapacitated in a strange land and a hostile government tries to capture them and steal their resources; a typical tale of corruption and betrayal. What if you’re not a member of the military? Do you put you and your family’s lives at risk to help those who can’t help themselves, especially for those who may never reward you or who may not even survive?

Josh discovers an injured shipwrecked alien and undertakes to not only care for it, but to seek out, rescue and protect its companions from not only his government, but others too.

A story of an intricate apocalyptic event where most of the the life on Earth is wiped out, but with a difference. This one focuses on the people during the apocalypse, and how it affects them afterwards.

The chronicles of a young man, as he discovers he’s a catalyst for other people, giving them strange abilities, and drawing strangers to him like moths to a flame. He’s not ready for what happens to him, but slowly adapts, with help from his family and friends. What he does with his many followers, though, is an open question.

Interesting story premise, I bought both books, made for good reading, excellent length making it a good value. Glad [there] are six books in the series.

Upcoming Books

The Demons Within

Phil Walker was an average man, until demons invaded his world. Unsure whether they were real, he resisted until they threatened someone’s life, and then he took action. The results were quick. He was questioned by the police, humiliated and insulted, but the homeless man he defended reported his schizophrenia was cured. After that, everything Phil knew was twisted upside down.

Seeking to understand his visions, he seeks answers, only to face skepticism and hostility from the medical community. Does it really matter if he’s technically insane if he cures hundreds? As Phil battles his inner demons, he wrestles with where these demons originate and how they impact him and his health. However, the question remains: are his new skills an otherworldly phenomenon, a disease or a gift from above?

A House in Disarray

(delayed again) 🙄

When the New York City Police Commissioner is compromised by the death of a city councilman, he appoints Detective Emma Rules to investigate, hoping to circumvent a public witch hunt. But what she uncovers implicates her boss. If she solves the crime, she could put the commissioner in jail, embarrass the city and make the entire police force the laughingstock of the country. Yet, if she doesn’t, it’ll make the city and the police look corrupt and mark her as ineffective and suspicious.

On top of that, unexpected visitors—her brother’s wife and young daughter—invite themselves into her home, upsetting her solitary life, creating family frictions and throwing her life into turmoil when she has little time to deal with it.

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11 Responses to VincentBerg.com

Easy. It’s available for sale at a number of online book stores (Apple, B&N, Kobo, Sony). You can also go directly to smashwords to buy it there. Click on the Grappling with Survival page for more details.

Ah, good question, and very specific too. I’m guessing you were stuck mid-stream somewhere?

As always, things always get much more complex in execution. Book 1 is largely done, now resting with the editors. Book 6, the conclusion (formerly book 4) is fully fleshed out and is awaiting revisions and editor input. However, when I started book 2 I decided to make yet another change, and I started switching the entire thing from 1st person to 3rd person, which will require essentially rewriting the entire thing, as that’s a fairly extensive change, so it’ll be hard to guess how long it’ll take to edit the full 47 chapters in the new books 2 & 3.

Forget the above. I decided such extensive changes weren’t in anyone’s best interests as it would hold the entire process up too much. Hopefully Book 2 can be edited relatively quickly, as the book is structurally sound. It’s Books 4 & 5 (previously “Racing the Clock” that I’m more interested in revising.

I just finished Racing The Clock as usual it was terrific. I know I say they are smoother than the originals but I think they are better organized if that makes sense. You have managed to improve an already great story. Thank you. I await the next installment.

I am lost without my next Catalyst book! When will it be available…really?

Well, Sam, it takes a while to finish each book off. Even cranking them out the way I am, it still takes a bit.

Since I’m releasing previously written material, I’ve been averaging a new book a month, which is really an unrealistic pace. What’s more, since I haven’t been able to work on Book 6, “Building a Legacy” (my editors hadn’t read the original story, and thus had to edit the entire series sequentially so they’d understand all the subtle references), I’m left with Book 6 only half finished (editing) now.

That said, I’ll try to keep to my basic one month schedule. However, that may be tempered by my wanting to give myself enough time to finish off Book 6. If it looks like Book 6 will take too long, it might be better to wait a little longer on Book 5, just so the wait for Book 6 isn’t quite so long.

The end result is that we’re looking at some time around either October or early November.

Anyway, I’m glad that you’re enjoying it so much. I also have another couple in the hopper. “Stranded” is also currently in editing, and I’ve finally started work on “The Great Death” book 3, tentatively titled “The Rejuvenation of Hope” (no idea on how long it’ll be yet).

> Vincent:
>
> I’ve really enjoyed reading the Catalyst series, and I would
> like to thank you for it. You’ve created interesting characters
> that I look forward to returning to, and a premise and situations
> that are engaging and entertaining. I will be sad to see the
> series end.
>
> However, and I hate to bring this up, my enjoyment is marred
> by some small issues that occur pretty consistently throughout
> the series, and that tend to pop me out of reader’s immersion
> and “suspension of disbelief” when I encounter them. I don’t
> know exactly how Smashwords works, but I hope that you’ll be
> able to correct these problems and publish improved second
> editions of the books.

I’ve been hoping to talk to you about that. The email you left on the comment wasn’t valid and I was hoping to discuss some of those issues with you. If you did that purposely, not wanting to be contacted, that’s fine. But if not, respond with a address I can respond to (it won’t show up here) and we can discuss your issues.

“Stranded” is a very good book. I loved the ability of the main character to make the government look like idiots, but only because they are I guess.

Thanks, Dick. That’s what I was going for, not necessarily to show that people in the government are idiots, but to show just how easy it is for political leaders to abuse their position, and how it’s easy for them to justify their power grabs to their opponents.

The story is ostensibly about an alien-invasion, but it’s really about the corruptions of the political system.